Okla. Council for Public Affairs Downplays Tax Cut Comparisons

The Oklahoma Council for Public Affairs, which supports eliminating the state income tax, cautioned against comparing how an impending quarter-percent income tax cut would benefit high- and low-income households, the Tulsa World reported Monday.

Nearly three-quarters of the $120 million tax cut would go to what are considered the wealthiest 20 percent of households in Oklahoma — those with earnings of more than $86,000 a year — according to an analysis by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy for the Tulsa-based Oklahoma Policy Institute.

The public affairs council’s Jonathan Small told the newspaper that it makes sense that tax cuts would bring greater net benefit to wealthier taxpayers.

“If you lower the rate, people who pay in more money are going to get more back," Small said.

Small warned against making comparisons with lower income taxpayers.

"You're making an assumption that, because someone works hard and makes more money, they should pay more," he said. "If you have less money, everything is going to take a bigger percentage of your income.

"I don't think it's fair to say a tax cut is not going to benefit everybody," Small said.

The Oklahoma Council for Public Affairs, which supports eliminating the state income tax, cautioned against comparing how an impending quarter-percent income tax cut would benefit high- and low-income households, the Tulsa World reported Monday.
Nearly three-quarters of...